IMK 221 - Food Ingredients - chew confections

By : Ayuni Shazwani

CHEW CONFECTIONS

nougat

caramel

jelly worm

QUESTIONS

How do you describe the texture of jelly worm, caramels, and nougat?
Apart from sucrose, corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) are common sweeteners in chewy confections. Apart from providing sweetness, what are the functions of the syrups?
Corn syrup with DE of 42 or 63 is commonly used in chewy caramel formulation. What is DE stand for? How the use of corn syrup with different DE (in this case 42 and 63) impact the physical and textural properties of chewy confections?
Crystallization of sugar is undesirable in chewy, non-grained confections. How crystallization of sugar can be inhibited?
What is sugar alcohols? Why they are widely used in sugar-free confections? Give examples of sugar alcohol (other than sorbitol).
Gummy candies typically contain 175 to 250 bloom gelatin. What is the meaning of "bloom"?
In gummy candies (such as gummy bear or jelly worm), gelatins Type A are favored over gelatins Type B. Why?
When gelatin is used in the formulation, what are the precautions that need to be taken to achieve the gel strength required?
What are the functions of starch molds normally used in the processing of jelly candies?
Apart from gelatin, what other gums can be used to modify the texture of gummy jellies?
What are the function of milk proteins in caramel?
Explain how the color, flavor and smooth, non-sticky appearance of caramels are obtained?
Can nougat be considered an emulsion as well as foam? Explain.

ANSWERS
1. Jelly worm gives them a distinctive chewy texture that ranges from soft to very firm, depending on the amount of gelatin used. The texture of caramels can be soft, chewy, or firm, depending on the ingredients and length of cooking time. The texture of nougat is compact, dense and chewy candy.
2. Functions of the syrups is

Humectancy
Preservation
Fermentable carbohydrate
Browning
Bulking agent
Hygroscopicity

3. DE stand for Dextrose Equivalent. 42 DE corn syrup offers better control against crystallization, 63 DE corn syrup, with a higher percentage of reducing sugars, offers better protection from drying out. To compensate, when using 42 DE corn syrup, manufacturers may add small amounts of reducing sugar in the form of dextrose, fructose or HFCS to enhance humectancy.
4. Because Nongrained confections have higher ratios of corn syrup to sucrose, to inhibit the sucrose's crystallization.
5. Sugar alcohol acts as a humectant and doctoring agent (anticrystallizing), which keeps the sucrose from crystallizing in the gummy candy to promote better shelf life and texture. Example is xylitol.
6. Bloom is a test to measure the strength of a gel or gelatin.
7. Type A gelatins, derived from pigskin and pig bones, usually are favored over Type B gelatins, derived from calfskin and beef bones. Type A has an isoelectric point around pH 7 to 9, while Type B has an isoelectric point about 4.7 to 5.0. Since most gummy candies have an acidic flavor and thus require a low pH, using Type B gelatins, with an isoelectric point in an acidic range, may result in a cloudy gel.
8. The precautions that need to be taken to achieve the gel strength required is thermoreversible gel starts to form when a hot gelatin solution is cooled below 30 to 35 degree C,at refrigeration temperature to reach maximum gel strength.Because the gels dissolve at the low temperature.
9. The functions of starch molds is to set the gelatin. Since gelatin is thermally sensitive, the jellies must set in the molds at room temperature.
10. Agar, pectin, or starch.
11. The function of milk proteins in caramel is for contributes to their distinct characteristics in several ways.Enter the colloidal solution of the milk proteins which, when heated along with the sugars, create protein-to-protein and protein-to-sugar interactions to build a network that imparts body and structure, resistance to cold flow, and chewiness. The proteins also help create and stabilize the fat-in-water emulsion.
12. Milk protein reacts with reducing sugars (lactose from milk, and dextrose, maltose and fructose from added sugars, sucrose and corn syrups) to form the Maillard reaction, where caramel color and flavor is developed.
13. Nougat can be considered an emulsion as well as foam because emulsion are defined as mixture of at least two immiscible liquids and nougats must dissolving dried egg albumen or some other whipping agent in water and mixing it with a combination of sucrose and corn syrup. They beat the mixture at a high speed until a foam is created. Nougats also can be well as foam because incorporating other colloidal agents, such as starch or pectin, into the formula also provides more structure to the foam. Beside that, food foams are usually made by whipping an aqueous solution of a foaming agent such as protein (egg albumen) or an emulsifier. Air is first entrained by the action of the mechanical element an the bubbles are elongated and subdivided into smaller bubbles, just as described above for liquid internal phases.